Electrical junction boxes are commonly mounted on the exterior vertical walls of buildings to provide electrical devices such as duplex receptacles or outlets to service various outdoor appliances. Some of the appliances are of the type, such as pumps and mosquito traps, that are commonly left plugged into the outlet for extended periods of time and through all types of weather conditions. It is therefore desirable in this situation to keep the electrical cord for the appliance plugged into the outlet while providing protection to the receptacle against rain, water spray, and other inclement conditions that may be encountered in a typical outdoor setting.
Various attempts have therefore been made to provide weatherproof covers for exterior junction boxes. U.S. Pat. No. 4,424,407 (hereinafter the '407 patent), for example, provided an electrical outlet safety cover having a top dimensioned to fit over an electrical outlet and define a closed space of sufficient size to include a plug inserted therein. The top included an opening through which an electrical cord could pass. Although the safety cover of the '407 patent provided protection for an outlet mounted in a vertically mounted electrical junction box, it was limited to protecting a vertically mounted box. If the safety cover of the '407 patent were installed on a horizontally-mounted electrical junction box, the plug openings in the cover would be oriented to the side, therefore allowing rain or water spray to enter the cover. The safety cover of the '407 patent was therefore inadequate for protecting a horizontally oriented electrical junction box.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,280,135 (hereinafter the '135 patent) attempted to solve this problem by providing an outdoor weatherproof protecting electrical outlet cover adapted to be attached in weatherproof connection to an electrical outlet. It included a gasket, a base plate, an insert, and a protective housing with gaps for accommodating electrical cords. The insert was sized and adapted to fit within an aperture in the base plate in one of two orientations, depending on the orientation of the electrical junction box it was used in conjunction with. The insert was capable of being rotated 90° to accommodate either a vertically or horizontally oriented box while the protective housing remained oriented vertically to allow the gaps to be positioned downward. Although the '135 patent provided a protective cover capable of accommodating both vertical and horizontal electrical junction boxes, the design was mechanically complex, relying upon a gasket, a base plate, an insert, and a protective housing to provide the desired protection.
Another attempt to provide protection to exterior electrical junction boxes was that proposed by U.S. Pat. No. 5,763,831 (hereinafter the '831 patent). This patent provided a method and apparatus for converting a universal cover plate for an electrical outlet to any desired specific cover plate. The apparatus included a base having a long and short side and removable tabs and hinges on both the long and short sides. Depending on the orientation of the electrical junction box, tabs were removed on the appropriate side to accommodate the box. A cover was provided with removable hinges that allowed the cover to open along more than one axis. To accommodate a horizontally oriented electrical junction box, the tabs on the short side of the base and the hinges on the short side of the cover are removed by prying, sawing, or cutting. Alternatively, to accommodate a vertically oriented electrical junction box, the tabs on the long side of the base and the hinges on the long side of the cover are removed. Although the '831 patent provided a protective cover for an electrical junction box in either a horizontal or vertical orientation, it was quite complex to install, requiring the installer to pry, saw, or cut two tabs on the base and two hinges on the cover in order to create a base and cover assembly that would cooperate to enclose an electrical junction box of a given orientation.
The complexity of the aforementioned prior art indicates a need for a simpler device for protecting electrical devices installed in exterior electrical junction boxes orientated either horizontally or vertically.